Fingerprint scanners were introduced as early as 2011 with Motorola Atrix leading the pack. However they gained popularity in 2013 when Apple came out with its advanced ‘Touch ID’ which was marketed as full of complex technology and processing amalgamation. Since then a lot of OEMs have tried their hands at installing a fingerprint scanner is their flagship phones to improve smartphone security and reduce theft and loss of privacy.

Below is the list of all the popular smartphones having a fingerprint scanner:

Apple

Apple launched the iPhone 5S with fingerprint sensor ‘Touch ID’ in 2013 which set a benchmark for other manufacturers. It was touted as the quickest and most accurate sensor then and has kept its word even now. The Touch ID has been integrated into the home button very neatly and the button doubles up as a fingerprint reader. The user has to place his finger multiple times on the ID to successfully integrate the fingerprint. Once done, the user may not have to enter lock screen credentials every tisme, a simple fingerprint sensing will unlock the iPhone.

Apple has continued the tradition with the successors, iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6S and 6S Plus also keeping the fingerprint sensor. The sensor has improved massively over the time with current unlock time being blazingly fast, twice as that on the 5S. Users say it is so fast that they are not able to view the lock screen when pressing the home button. The device quickly unlocks the screen as soon as it senses the finger.

Samsung

Samsung was expected to join the bandwagon early in 2013, however both Samsung Galaxy S4 and Galaxy Note 3 did not come with a fingerprint sensor. However, in April 2014, Samsung launched its first fingerprint sensing phone, Samsung Galaxy S5. The flagship was a small upgrade from the Galaxy S4, sans the fingerprint sensor at the back.

Samsung decided to go a different way, instead of just placing your finger on the home button, the user had to swipe from top to bottom to register the fingerprint. It was realised that the fingerprint is no better than the Touch ID in Apple and was criticised by many.

The accuracy was off and it was a task to swipe from top to bottom to unlock the device, a lot more inconvenient than just putting in a pattern or password on the screen. However, things have improved since then and the latest gizmos get a single touch fingerprint sensor. The sensor doubles up as an authentication device for Samsung Pay.

LG

LG came in a little late with this trend by launching LG G4 earlier this year. Unlike other phones, LG phones have a fingerprint reader at the back embedded into the home button. LG has completely obliterated buttons on the front panel, hence the decision to have the fingerprint reader at the back.

It could be a little inconvenient for some people since many are used to buttons in the front, however once a user gets used to it, it has absolutely no shortcomings. As expected, the sensor is accurate and performs very well.

LG G6

The LG G6 is priced at Rs. 51,799 on Amazon.in right now. The main USP of the phone is its 13 MP dual rear camera setup. Other features include IP68 certification, 5.7-inch IPS 2K display, and a 3300 mAh battery.

HTC

HTC has been a well-known name in the smartphone industry for starting the fingerprint sensor trend early in the market with HTC One Max. It was launched soon after iPhone 5S and was good enough for a flagship back then. However there were some issues HTC faced like ease of hacking the stored fingerprints from HTC phones, which completely lowered HTC’s premium image.

Even after all this, HTC phones have gained popularity because of the build quality and extremely premium looks, although they do come at a higher price. HTC One M9+ is the latest smartphone that comes with a fingerprint scanner, awkwardly placed on the front panel in between the speakers. The sensor responds well and the unlock times are extremely low, complementing other features in the phone.

Google

Although Google doesn’t make the phones itself, it does partner with leading OEMs to develop Android phones that get maximum support from Google in terms of software. Hardware is in some way also decided by Google. Thanks to Huawei and LG, Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X, respectively, have really quick fingerprint sensors.

Placed at the back panel of the phone, the circular area, which is not a physical button that can be pressed, is solely the fingerprint sensor below the camera. Going by reviews, the reader is very fast and is extremely reliable every time. The phones are famous for vanilla Android experience and timely updates.

Huawei Honor 7

Huawei has launched plethora of smartphones with fingerprint scanners this year, however only one has been launched in India. Huawei Honor 7 has a fingerprint sensor on the back panel that has been tried and tested by critics. The fingerprint reader does well in all departments and does not lag at all.

Sony

Sony was the last to join the league of extraordinary phones with this security feature. However, it did not disappoint and in fact came out with a radical design. The Sony Xperia Z5 series has a fingerprint scanner in built into the side lock button. This means the phone lacks a physical button both on the front panel and the back panel.

The button doubles up as a screen lock and as a fingerprint sensor. When the fingerprint lock is setup, touching the button once will promptly unlock the device, much like the iPhone 6S. The response has been reported to be very fast and accurate as well.

Lenovo Vibe P1

Lenovo has come out with a budget smartphone to tackle the likes of OnePlus X and Moto G3, however with a fingerprint sensor. The 4G enabled smartphone packs in a lot of features at a very low price, however doesn’t match up to its competitors in terms of quality.

The fingerprint sensor has been placed on the front panel exactly like Samsung phones and has been reported to perform as expected, however it could be a tad bit faster. However at this price, the sensor seems good enough. The USP of the phone is the large battery at 4900 mAh which Lenovo claims can easily last 2 days.

Lenovo K4 Note

Lenovo K4 Note is the much anticipated successor to the popular K3 Note and brings a lot of new features like support for VR, Dolby Atmos surround sounds, NFC, 4G LTE, and a fingerprint scanner. It is available for Rs. 11,999.

Gionee Elife E8

Gionee has been known to make stylish smartphones are a decently affordable price. Launched in October of this year, the Elife E8 succeeds the Elife E7 and comes with a back panel located fingerprint scanner. The fingerprint reader is known to perform excellent in most conditions and is very responsive as well. The phone comes with other high-end features as well which complement the security services.

Gionee S6s

Gionee S6s is a dual SIM phone with a 5.5-inch 2.5D full HD, display powered by 1.3 GHz octa-core processor. The phones runs on Android Marshmallow with 3GB RAM, 32GB ROM. It also has a 13 MP rear camera and 8 MP front camera and is priced at Rs. 14,875.

The main USP of the phone besides the curved glass display (which looks fabulous by the way) is its front facing flash.

ZUK Z2 Pro

ZUK, a Lenovo owned brand, has launched Z2 Pro powered by Snapdragon 820 and Android Marshmallow and 6 GB and 4 GB RAM options. These 2 models are available with different amount of ROM, 128 GB and 64 GB respectively.

Xolo Q2100

Launched a year back, Xolo was pretty quick to incorporate the security feature in its phone Q2100. The phone came with a fingerprint sensor which was good for its time, however it has become old and dated. The other features of the phone as well seem to have become outdated with cheaper phones having better specifications.

Oppo R7 Plus

Chinese smartphone makes, Oppo, has been known to manufacture devices with innovative features like rotating camera and now Oppo has launched a couple of phone with fingerprint scanners. Although only R7 Plus is available in India right now, Oppo has been making them since early this year.

The fingerprint sensor is located on the back panel of the phone below the camera in square form and has been known to work extremely well.

Gionee S6 Pro

Gionee S6 Pro and is powered by MediaTek MT6755M 1.8GHz octa-core processor. The phone comes with dual SIM support, 5.5-inch 2.5D curved screen with full HD support. It is loaded with 4GB RAM, 64GB ROM, and 128GB micro SD support and has a price tag of Rs. 21,865.

LeEco LeMax 2

LeMax 2 is high-end offering the Chinese brand LeEco. The phone is priced at Rs. 17,999 and packs a great hardware that you can get at that price point. Its hardware includes 4 GB RAM, 32 GB ROM, 3100 mAh battery, 5.7 inch IPS LCD 2K display, 21/8 MP camera combo. The phone runs on Android Marshmallow and doesn’t have support for expandable memory.

Motorola Moto G4 Plus

Motorola Moto G4 is a dual SIM phone priced at Rs. 13,499 in India and supports all the LTE bands used by Indian operators. It is powered by an octa-core Snapdragon 617 SoC, 2/3 GB RAM (depending upon the model), 5.5” FHD protected by Gorilla Glass 3, 16 MP camera with powerful AF mechanism, and a 3000 mAh battery.

The phone also runs on the latest Android OS 6.0.1 and boasts a fast fingerprint scanner.

Xiaomi Mi Max

Xiaomi Mi Max is one monster of a smartphone as far as it display size is concerned. It packs a 6.44 inch IPS full HD display protected by Gorilla Glass 3 and comes in 3/4 GB RAM variants depending upon the internal memory which is either 32 GB or 128 GB.

Huawei P9

Huawei P9 is a dual SIM phone with 5.2-inch full HD display, 1.8GHz octa-core processor and it comes with 3 or 4 GB RAM variants. The phone runs on Android Marshmallow, has 32 GB ROM and can be expanded up to 256 GB by micro SD card. Huawei P9 is priced at Rs. 39,999.

The USP of Huawei P9 is its dual 12MP f/2.2 Leica rear camera setup supporting PDAF and dual-tone dual-LED flash. The camera can’t record 4K videos but does 1080p recording at 60fps. It also graces an 8MP front shooter, and is powered by a non-removable 3000 mAh battery.

Coolpad Note 5

The new Coolpad phone known as Coolpad Note 5 is powered by Snapdragon 617 processor, and packed with 4GB RAM. It has 5.5-inch display full HD, and 4G VoLTE enabled .This phone has 13MP rear camera, and 8MP front camera with flash and has price tag of Rs. 10,999

Major smartphone maker Motorola was the first one to introduce a fingerprint sensor in a phone, however none of its leading phones have a fingerprint sensor even now. The philosophy followed by Moto’s CEO is that the fingerprint scanner is only a gimmick and not as important as other features.

Now, that smartphones users are embracing the use of fingerprint scanning technology in their phones, it remains a matter of time when Motorola would decide to launch a phone supporting a fingerprint scanner.